يا مغاربة، عدني سؤال عن كلمتين بالدرجة
Khsek, as in
Sh'hal, as in

Do these words have any connection to fus7a that I can use to help me remember them? For example, my friend told me that هلق in the shaami dialect is an abbreviation of هذا الوقت. I realize that ending of khsek is the possessive pronoun, so what is khs? I assume it means something like preference, since the full question is the Moroccan equivalent of شو بدّك in shaami.

Question

يا مغاربة، عدني سؤال عن كلمتين بالدرجة
Khsek, as in 
Sh'hal, as in

Do these words have any connection to fus7a that I can use to help me remember them? For example, my friend told me that هلق  in the shaami dialect is an abbreviation of هذا الوقت.  I realize that ending of khsek is the possessive pronoun, so what is khs? I assume it means something like preference, since the full question is the Moroccan equivalent of شو بدّك in shaami.

Answer

One of the meanings of خَصَّ in Arabic is to have a need, and from which we have the word خَصاصَة: lack, need, poverty.
That's why, when you say : واش/آش خَصَّك - it means what do you need ?

Concerning شحال, it comes probably from آش حال، meaning what's the case/condition/situation of. Therefore it can have two meanings :
1- شحال used in the Maghreb in the meaning of how many/much equivalent to the standard كَم. as well as for [b'shHaal = bi-kam], examples :
             - شحال عندك من كتاب ؟  : how many books do you have
             - بشحال هذا أو شحال هذا : how much is this ?
2- شحال / اشحال  (how is ...) used in the Gulf for example شحالك = how are you ?

إيش، آش used in the meaning of 'what' in many dialects, is derivated from أي شي

Answer

الكلمة شحال معناها من وقت طويل